Woman alleges rape in moving bus, one man nabbed

A 25-year-old woman travelling with her two children from UP’s Pratapgarh has alleged that she was raped by the driver of a private bus while on her way to Gautam

A 25-year-old woman travelling with her two children from UP’s Pratapgarh has alleged that she was raped by the driver of a private bus while on her way to Gautam Budh Nagar. A case has been registered at Sector 20 police station based on teh woman’s complaint and one suspect arrested, police said.

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The incident took place in the wee hours of Wednesday. The woman’s husband works in Noida and she was on her way from their hometown in Pratapgarh with her two minor children to see him.

In her complaint she has alleged that they started late at night and she was awake till they reached Lucknow around midnight, after which she fell asleep.

“She is not very clear about the time at which the incident occurred but according to the facts being stated by her, the private overnight sleeper bus was on the Lucknow-Mathura stretch when the incident took place. She said that it was still dark outside when the incident took place,” said deputy commissioner of police, women safety, Vrinda Shukla.

According to police officers, the bus driver was the primary suspect and raped the woman after a backup driver took over the wheels. One more person is involved in the incident. There were 22 other passengers in the bus at the time.

“After a while, the woman called her husband and relayed the incident. She had raised an alarm and informed the police as well. Scared, the suspects abandoned the bus and fled from the spot. One of them was nabbed and taken into custody,” said Shukla.

Local police got to know about the incident around 6 am when the woman was found near a private hospital in the Atta area. The bus was seized from the spot and it’s owner traced to Delhi’s Anand Vihar.

The DCP said that teams have been formed to trace and arrest the absconding suspects. The owner as well as all other passengers are being questioned and their statements recorded. The medical examination of the woman is being done by a medical board.

The suspects have been booked under sections 376 (punishment for rape) and 506 (punishment for criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code.

The suspect was produced before a magistrate and later sent to jail.